Get the counter have it installed then choose backsplash what is the finish on the cabinets going to be . IMO less is more when posting a dilemma I for one do not want to read a book. BTW I never like accent tile behind a range unless you have a huge Tuscan kkitchen ideally in Tuscany. I do need to know what the counter is. BTW those cabinets should have been MDF for painting and they should have been factory finished.

Hi @Patricia Colwell Consulting - Thanks for the tips! The countertops are Dekton “Bromo” (mitered on all edges to 2”) and the are being fabricated now. The painters arrived today, so the countertops will probably go on in 7-10 days, depending on paint drying, etc.

The cabinets are full custom by a local carpenter...no chance of him using MDF. I think they’ll be using a conversion varnish.

So you think I should skip the cement tile all together? I just love the look of cement tile (always have) and thought it might add at least a little visual interest in what might be a sea of solids. I’ll have to think about that!

Thanks for your input - I really appreciate it!

If you can hold off on deciding whether or not to add the stove accent until your counters and cabinets ( and lighting ) are in, I think that is safer.

I think a framed accent panel looks better than unframed. If your cement tile is thicker than your field tile, it's a necessity to avoid the unfinished side of the accent tile being visible.

OMG, @cupofkindnessgw - neighbors?! We are in the Spring Valley/Hillcrest area, and are VERY fortunate to have the best GC around, IMO. His name is Curtis Hicks, of CDH Builders/Remodelers, LLC. He’s been around for years, and has multiple crews of top of the line subs that work for him. You would be very fortunate to work with him!

Anyway, back to ME ;) - When you say to not use the pencil tile, and not to frame anything above the range, do you mean skip the cement tile accent idea all together - like Patricia recommended?

And yes - the cabinets were DISGUSTING. Ugh.

The flooring is going to be floating cork planks. I’ve never seen it in person, but am very excited about it. It’s waterproof, highly scratch resistant, and super easy (read ’inexpensive’) to install. Of course, my DH insists that we do the floating floors even though we’ve fixed the foundation...just in case. We have existing hardwoods and I wanted something that wouldn’t look like we were trying to “match,” or pass it off as hardwood.

@barncatz - That’s great advice re the thickness issue. Thank you!

Whether you do accent tile (framed or unframed) above the stove, obviously, is personal choice/taste. I've always thought it looks better without.

I've got Home Depot floating cork flooring in my newish kitchen and love it, despite some scuffing from dropped pots, etc.

@Carrie B - that is so good to hear! Ours is coming from Green Building Supply. It should arrive any day...!

So it sounds like the consensus so far is to nix the idea of the cement accent tile completely? *sob*

Should I not be worried about the sea of vanilla 4 x 12 tile for the 19’ and 7’ L-shaped runs?

Mary, thanks for the referral, MUCH appreciated. I live in Lake Highlands, my home was built in 1977. Lots of crazy ceilings, you've seen it in far north Dallas too. Of course we have foundation issues. : ( Our structural engineer said our foundation wasn't flat the day it was poured.

Yes, I mean skip the special tile over the range. It's not that it's a dated look, but any kitchen can only have so many focal points before it becomes a visual brawl. I think the window is the star player along that wall. Sink in island? I love the cement tile you've chosen, it's gorgeous but perhaps there is a different way to incorporate it? If you were doing a lighter countertop (white quartzite) perhaps you could pull off that tile for the entire backsplash, but with a dark counter it would shift the mood of the kitchen quite a bit.

"Should I not be worried about the sea of vanilla 4 x 12 tile for the 19’ and 7’ L-shaped runs?"

The vanilla will fade into the background, as it should. Even the least cluttered counter has *some* stuff on it - a bowl of fruit, a vase, a teakettle - which will break up the vanilla. Make those things pretty and that's what you'll notice - and it will look great.

Accent tiles are made to draw attention to themselves. And they're (semi) permanent. Problems arise when tastes change or one or more of you gets bored with them, or you decide to paint your walls a different color and the colors you like best don't look good with the accent tile.

Keep accent items temporary/remove-able and the bones classic.

That 19' run is broken by the fabulous window... and the seven foot run is in the corner? What kind of range hood will you be installing?

If you decide to drop the cement tile, please look at pictures of cream/white backsplashes and dark countertops again. Make sure you love it now that the accent tile is off the table. But TBH, your choices are classic and you have lots of places to echo that lovely blue color featured in the cement tile into your kitchen. Your painted cabinets will be gorgeous! Since I have no windows in my kitchen, I'm thinking about that color range for lower cabinets, white counters, blue backsplash and white uppers.

Personally I think if that tile makes you happy you should use it. No border though.. If you do decide to nix it maybe find a more interesting shape for your white tile so it doesnt feel so "sea of vanilla" to you...

Well I do love the cement tile, but I can fall out of love pretty quickly if it’s going to look ridiculous. I actually didn’t add it to my rendering until a couple of weeks ago. Until then I was keeping it completely classic, etc.

I am SO GLAD I asked you guys! You’re the best.

I would have had to spend the next however many years blaming my DH for “insisting” on the accent tile behind the range...that, IMO of course, is soooo gauche!

Maybe I can incorporate the cement tile somewhere in the mud laundry that is also part of this phase of the renovation.

I’m going to attach a couple of my rendering pics with and without the accent tile.

And to answer a couple other questions:

The sink is under the window, not in the island.

‘The “hood” is an OTR microwave (vented directly outside). Yes, we are those people.

Definitely better without! PS: I have an OTR as well, and it blends right into the rest of the kitchen (white cabinets, white appliances.)

@Carrie B - That is good to know!

I often like mosaic tile when it is not “framed”. Perhaps a vertical stove backsplash, the width of the range, could work.

Here is what the actual light fixtures are...

Over the kitchen table:

Over the sink:

Over the island (3 pendants):

@chinacatpeekin -

Perhaps a vertical stove backsplash, the width of the range, could work.

What does this mean? So sorry - I don’t understand!

I like the cement tiles, but, I too, would not add it in your kitchen in just the stove area. It looks better to have the backsplash all the same. I also agree, dont make that decision at all, until you get the counters on, cabinets painted, etc.

Thank you, @cat_ky - That sounds like good advice.

I'm not a pro, but I feel like I've learned a couple of things by reading their posts here. I grew to regret some of the choices I made in my last reno (which was about 13 years ago) and I know that my next kitchen reno will likely be my last. (That's in a house that's TBD, so no plans now.) So my un-pro-ish advice is to keep things simple. I love your fancy tile, so I'd see how else to use that. Maybe tile a big square or rectangle of something like plywood, and hang it behind your cooktop like a picture? Then you can remove it years down the road if you like. Or use the individual tiles as trivets with some of that felt that's used on the bottom of chair and table legs. Or find an old table and tile the top of it for an accent table if you have the room. Stuff like that.

Things like cabinet hardware, paint, and lighting are easy swap-outs. Tile, not so much.

BTW congrats on your new kitchen! It will be gorgeous!

Not a pro, but the star of your kitchen will be your cabinets since you're doing two high contrast cabinet paint colors. Counters and backsplash will be supporting players. As others have noted, no tile feature above the range, just continue your regular backsplash tiles.

I swear - you guys rock my world. @chicagoans, those are some wonderful ideas on how to incorporate my beloved cement tiles without what I’ve now come to realize (from the very first response from @Patricia Colwell Consulting) is an outdated and dare I say - a ‘tacky’ application ;). I love the trivet idea!

And @tlynn1960, thanks for reinforcing what I feel about my painted cabinets. I’ve been ’living’ with these ideas, creating the design and renderings, choosing materials, etc. for what seems like such a long time now (actually about 6 months - but an intense 6 months!) that it’s easy to forget the vision I had to begin with.

Sorry if my post wasn’t clear; I’m (obviously) not a pro :)
What I was trying to describe is that you might consider having your mosaic tile run the width of the space between your taller upper cabinets, filling the space up to the hood.
However, on second thought, I’m going to change my recommendation to eliminating the accent tile in this case, because I don’t think that look will work with the OTR microwave. Make it simple.

Got it. However, now that I understand what you mean, if I were to continue with the wildly unpopular ;) idea of the accent tile, your suggestion would be a much better choice from an aesthetic point of view. Thanks for the clarification!

I like the idea of a trivet, or a wall hanging, or tiling the top of a small table. It will give you something you love, and wont date out your kitchen. You could even make coasters to use for coffee cups. Lots of ideas, for what they could be used from, with just a bit of thought. Put on a board, for centerpiece of your table would be another idea.

@cat_ky, I love those ideas. I’ve got to figure out something to do with the 2 boxes of 6” tiles that I already have (only 32 tiles total) or my DH will kill me. I already told him we are canceling the plan for the decorative area behind the stove, and of course his first question was “What are you going to do with the tile? You already bought it, right?”

I told him I’d return it. I don’t think he realizes that they are lying all over the house in various combinations of linear matches.

I might need to smuggle them out of the house or something.

Might you have a bathroom that needs remodeling? :)

Oooh... Interesting... 😏

Mary, I know you're busy but could you take a picture of your sink cabinet? The base cabinet I see on the range wall under the window looks like a three drawer cabinet, is the sink in a different location? And how is the painting going?

@cupofkindnessgw,

Here you go! It is a 3 drawer cabinet. All 3 drawers will be a wiiiiide U shape to account for the sink & related equipment, but I’ll be able to store all of the sink/cleaning accoutrement.

The sink is 42” wide, so the top drawer might be pretty useless, but I’m going back & forth with the carpenter about making it operable anyway. He insists it shouldn’t be done. I think it should.

I bet I‘ll win.

The painting is still in the ‘prep’ stage, as you can see. Three of the four guys that were working on it had to go back to our master bath to hang a large mirror, and my bespoke trapeze towel bars (anchored in the attic) left over from Phase I of the reno (MBed, MBath, MCloset, Powder Room/closet/linen to Laundry/Powder room) that started in October.

Good times.